Art of plate-printing.



No. 692,35l. Patented Feb. 4, I902.

A. REID.

ART OF PLATE PRINTING.

(Application filed may 29, 1900.)

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UNiTn STATES ATENT OFFICE.

ALEXANDER REID, OF JERSEY CITY, NEIV JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO THE AMERICANBANK NOTE COMPANY, OF NEWV YORK, N. Y., A CORPO- RATION OF NEW YORK.

ART OF PLATE-PRiNTING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 692,351, datedFebruary 4, 1902.

Application filed May 29, 1900. Serial No.18,401. (No specimens.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be itknown that I, ALEXANDER REID, a citizen of the United States,residing at Jersey City, in the county of Hudson, State of New Jersey,have invented new and useful Improvements in the Art of PlatePrinting,of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to the art of plateprinting, and has for its objectto provide an improved process for treating an ordinaryfinished engravedor intaglio plate preparatory to taking an impression therefrom, wherebythe plain or unengraved portions of said plate will repel or will notretain the ink deposited thereon in the usual inking operation, whilethe engraved or intaglio lines of said plate will be in no wise affectedand will receive theirproper quantity of ink in the usual manner, saidplate being finally subjected to a wiping and polishing action in theusual manner in order to obtain a perfect impression. This object Iaccomplish by depositing upon said plate after each impression is takentherefrom and before the inkis applied thereto for a new impression afilm or coating of liquid, preferably Water, then inking said plate, andfinally subjecting the same to a wiping and polishing action, it havingbeen found that the deposit of said film or coating effectually preventsthe deposit or at least the retention of substantially any ink upon theplain or unengraved portions of said plate while it in no way affectsthe capability of the engraved or intaglio lines of said plate fortaking their proper quantity of ink.

In the drawing accompanying this specification I have illustrated amechanism capable of accomplishing the desired result, the same beingshown applied to a rotary plateprinting press carrying two plates.

In the said drawing the figure is a side elevation of arotarylplate-printing press, the framework being shown in dottedoutline.

In the said drawing the reference-numeral 1 denotes the plate-cylinder,carrying two plates 2, above which is located the usualimpression-cylinder 3. To the rear of said impression-cylinder ismounted a gripper-cylinder at of any desired type, as shown, for

instance, in Letters Patent to J. T. Robertson, No. 622,168, while onthe under side of the press are located the wipin g mechanism 5 andpolishing mechanism 6. The inking mechanism is located on the rear sideof the plate-cylinder and consists of the usual inkfountain 7,fountain-roll 8, and ink-rolls 9. All of the above-described parts maybe of any desired construction and form no part of the presentinvention.

Intermediate the gripper-cylinder 4 and inking mechanism is located acarrier 10, in which at a point in the path of travel of the plates 2 isa soft flat pad 11 of any suitable material, over which passes a belt offabric 12, preferably shirting-muslin, which is carried up overguide-roll13, between a moistening-roll 14 and squeezing-roll15, thencedownward over guide-roll 16 and tension-rolls 17, and over the face ofpad 11 again. The moistening-roll 14 receives its liquid from a feedroll18, rotating in tank 19, as will be readily understood. A pawl 20,operated by any suitable mechanism from the press and engaging with aratchet-wheel 21 on one end of the moistening-roll 14, serves tointermittently rotate the latter, so as to present a fresh wettedsurface of the belt 12 to each plate 2, the operation being such thatsaid beltis stationary while a plate is passing in contact therewith. Asuitable adjusting-screw 22 serves to adjust the pad 11 in its relationto the plates 2.

From the above description the operation of my invention will beunderstood to be as follows: In the rotation of the press each plate 2delivers its impression to the paper fed thereinto and passes onto theink-train, before reaching which, however, it passes the wetted belt 12,pressed in contact therewith by the pad 11, from which it receives afilm of liquid sufficient to cover the polished or unengraved surface ofthe plate, but not sufficient to enter the engraved lines. The platethen passes on to the inking-rolls 9, from which it receives the ink inthe usual manner. It will be found, however, that the polished orunengraved portions of said plate Will retain substantially none of theink deposited there'- on, though the engraved lines of said plate wherethe ink is desired will be properly filled with the ink. The plate isthen subjected to a slight wiping and polishing action in order toobtain a perfect impression, for the reason that the ink deposited inthe engraved lines will when deposited in quantity sufficient to insurea proper inking project slightly above the surface of the plate and willpresent a rough and uneven surface, which is readily removed by theWiper 5, leaving the surface of the ink even with the surface of theplate. The polisher 6 then imparts the desired finish to the plate, andit is ready to be printed from.

i It will thus be seen that the application to an ordinary finishedintaglio metal plate of the film or surface of liquid prior to thepassage of said plate past the inking mechanism renders those portionsof the plate upon which no ink is desired incapable of taking the ink,while it in no way affects the deposit of the ink in the engraved lines,a desideratuin heretofore thought impossible of attainment.

I am aware that it is old in the lithographic art to so give a metalsurface,whether intaglio or not, a preparatory treatment that thoseportions of the surface which are not to print will retain a film ofmoisture applied thereto, the purpose of which is to repel the ink, asin the case of an ordinary lithographic stone. In my present inventionsuch preparatory treatment of the printing-surface'is not employed andis disclaimed, the essential feature of the same residing in theapplication of the liquid to the ordinary polished, en-

graved, or intaglio plate without any preparatory treatment thereof.

My improvedprocess is designed for use more particularly with steel orcopper surfaces as distinguished from other metal surfaces, such asaluminium or zinc, which latter have been heretofore used more or lessextensively as lithographic surfaces.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. In the art of plate-printing, theprocess of treating an engraved or intaglio plate preparatory to takingan impression therefrom, which consists in first dampening or depositingon the ordinary finished surface thereof and without preparatorytreatment a film of liquid, then inking said plate in the usual manner,and finally wiping and polishing the same, substantially as set forth.

2. In the art of plate-printing, the process of treating an engraved orintaglio steel plate preparatory to taking an impression therefrom,which consists in first dampening or depositing on the ordinary finishedsurface thereof and without preparatory treatment a film of liquid, andthen inking said plate in the usual manner, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of twosubscribing witnesses.

ALEXANDER REID.

Witnesses:

IsAAc F. GoLDnNHoRN, HEIMAN FEINSTEIN.

